Parshat Vayeshev

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Joseph's dreams and his brothers' jealousy, Joseph sold into slavery, Judah and Tamar, and Joseph in Potiphar's house and prison. Genesis 37:1-40:23.

Vanity of Vanities and What It Really Means

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 2:1

It starts with a bang: "Vanity of vanities, said Kohelet; vanity of vanities, everything is vanity" (Ecclesiastes 1:2). But what does that even mean? What is this "vanity," this he...

CreationHeavenAdam & EveJoseph

Avimelekh: Abraham at the Dawn of Creation

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 26:1

"For to the man who is good before Him, He gave wisdom, knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner He gave the task to gather and to amass, to give to one who is good before God. This, ...

CreationPatriarchsJosephSolomon

Elijah: Moses at the Dawn of Creation

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 15:1

And the ancient Rabbis, in their commentary called Kohelet Rabbah, dive deep into a specific verse that really makes you think: "What has been, already is, and what will be has alr...

CreationAdam & EveNoah & FloodPatriarchs

The Eulogy That Honored a Life of Torah Study

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 11:4

That’s a feeling woven deep into the tapestry of Jewish tradition, a feeling the rabbis grappled with intensely. how they expressed it. The story begins with the passing of Ḥiyya b...

CreationPatriarchsJosephSolomon

What Was Already Named and Known Before Creation

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 10:1

The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet as it's known in Hebrew, wrestles with these very feelings. One verse in particular, Ecclesiastes 6:10, really gets to the heart of it: "What w...

CreationAngelsAdam & EveJoseph

Acts of Kindness at the Beginning Middle and End of Torah

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 2:2

And it's not just some nice little add-on. It's woven into the very fabric of our faith. Rabbi Berekhya, in Kohelet Rabbah, makes a powerful point: acts of kindness appear at the b...

CreationAdam & EvePatriarchsJoseph

Solomon: Adam at the Dawn of Creation

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 23:1

King Solomon, wisest of all men, apparently felt that too. Ecclesiastes 7:23 reads, "All this I attempted with wisdom; I said: I will become wise, but it is far from me." What does...

CreationAngelsAdam & EvePatriarchs

The Woman Whose Heart Is Snares - Temptation in Kohelet

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 26:3

The passage centers on a verse describing a certain kind of woman – a figure that becomes a symbol for temptation itself: "Whose [heart] is snares and nets." (Ecclesiastes 7:26). W...

CreationJosephElijah

The Wicked Buried With Honor While the Just Forgotten

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 10:1

The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet as it's known in Hebrew, grapples with this constantly. And one particular verse, Ecclesiastes 8:10, has sparked a lot of fascinating interpret...

HeavenJosephMosesSolomon